Recommended reading: The World is Flat

Recommended reading: The World is Flat
by Karyn Romeis | Mon, 12/01/2008 - 05:11

I confess that I have major issue with the premise of this book, hailing as I do from a third world country where the average small business enjoys less bandwidth than the average American teenager, where a large percentage of the population does not have access to the internet at all (in fact a large percentage of the population has neither electricity nor indoor plumbing), and of those that do, many (most?) are still on dial-up connection.

Nevertheless, it remains a book of note in our era. Be warned, however, that it isn't universally regarded as a particularly readable book. Many reviewers find it verbose and overlong, while others are not convinced of the accuracy of its case studies - or the necessity for so many of them!

Friedman identifies 10 factors that have caused the flattening of our world, or the leveling of the global playing field. International and organisational boundaries were swept away by these changes, and now a global collective of individuals is engaging with one another. Friedman's take on this is positive and enthusiastic.

Not all readers agree with his take - even supposing that all he says is true, but that is the beauty of it - the individual is free to decide. Free to agree or disagree. Free to debate the topic in open forum (with others who have access to that forum).

My own view of the flat world is no secret to those who have been reading my blogs for some time.

However, how does this relate to online learning and teaching?

Consider this: those of us who teach and learn in this space must decide whether or not we agree that the world is flat. We must decide how to deliver our materials or access our learning based on that decision. We must exercise critical thinking skills and no longer view materials published online as being the view of experts. Person X agrees with Friedman. Person Y does not. Who do I agree with? What do I think? Can I defend that stance?

It is worth bearing in mind that only just over 20% of the world's population currently has access to the internet, so polling these people for their views of the flat world may be a little like the telephone poll that had Hoover winning the 1932 American presidential election.

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